Actor Robert Pattinson received a standing ovation lasting nearly eight minutes at the Venice Film Festival on Saturday following the premiere of his highly anticipated film Primetime at Sala Grande. The A24 production, directed by Lance Oppenheim, had its world premiere at the festival, with Pattinson portraying To Catch a Predator host Chris Hansen.
The packed audience reacted enthusiastically, erupting into an energetic standing ovation that continued for almost eight minutes. Pattinson and Oppenheim were joined by the film’s full cast for the premiere, which also attracted several prominent Hollywood filmmakers and stars.
Ari Aster, Chloe Zhao, Mona Fastvold and Amanda Seyfried were seated a few rows behind the film’s team. They reportedly entered the theatre after the lights had gone down ahead of the screening. At one point, Aster joined other audience members in chanting, “Lance! Lance! Lance! Lance!” in celebration of Oppenheim.
Pattinson also shared a tender moment with his partner, Suki Waterhouse, during the premiere. Just before the standing ovation began, the actor turned around and kissed Waterhouse as she enthusiastically applauded the film.
Primetime was considered one of the most coveted tickets of the festival’s opening weekend. Pattinson plays Chris Hansen, the presenter of To Catch a Predator, known for repeatedly confronting alleged paedophiles on camera.
In his official director’s statement for Venice, Oppenheim said his aim was to create “an institutional portrait of To Catch a Predator at the height of its success.” His previous projects include the series Ren Faire and films Spermworld and Some Kind of Heaven.
“I wanted to trace the disparate ambitions of people who existed inside this apparatus — a journalistic crusader, a mercenary TV producer and a wide-eyed Hollywood dreamer — converging into a moment of crisis. And I liked the idea of revisiting the media culture of the early 2000s, before the news landscape fractured, when a ‘primetime’ slot felt like a matter of life or death. For some, it was,” Oppenheim said.
The filmmaker assembled a cast featuring Merritt Wever, Skyler Gisondo, Phoebe Bridgers and Bokeem Woodbine alongside Pattinson. Oppenheim also directed Bridgers’ recently released music video Lost Boys, the lead single from her new album Lost Weekend. During the ovation, after the crowd repeatedly chanted Oppenheim’s name, the audience also began cheering for Bridgers with chants of “Phoebe! Phoebe! Phoebe!”
Primetime is loosely based on an Esquire article by Luke Dittrich and was adapted by first-time screenwriter Ajon Singh. The film explores the darkest period of Hansen’s time as the host of To Catch a Predator.
